A chance encounter
by Nekomata The Cat King
Summary: A chance encounter with Kaoru will change Kenshin's life forever yet for long the pain of her loss will not allow his heart to enjoy the peace he for so little time was able to possess and now that they have a chance together will their hearts find the strength to fall during this second encounter. (I suck at summaries but did my best) AU/KK/SM/AM. Rated M for later chapters
1. Forgive

Hi fanfic readers! This is my first fanfiction published in a long time and the very first with this nickname so I hope it works for all your tastes and appetites...

This fanfiction is rated M for particular reasons, namely some cursing, violence and for now references to sexual stuff... so please if you do not any of this or are a minor I suggest you stop reading.

As a "new" publisher I would very much appreciate if you read and reviewed the story... althou no flames would be appreaciated even more, constructive criticism would be nice.

BTW: For those who find it funny... this chapter was edited because of OCD... I do hope it is easier to read now edited. THANKS

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or any of its characters.

**CHAPTER 1**

**Forgive**

The small city seemed to be calm and quiet for a Saturday morning as he walked slowly through the foliage. The green grass had grown so tall with wild flowers all around it; it covered his tracks as he disappeared away from the view of those enjoying the rarity of such a nice day.

The sun was bright up in the clear blue sky… only a few clouds moved slowly together all white and fluffy inviting to rest and relax, yet dark thoughts occupied the walker's mind.

Who would go after him anyway? The marks on the ground left by his stumbling form were like the scar still angry and red on his face, a proof of how his mere existence had destroyed something precious.

If they found him would they kill him? They would probably try and he felt compelled to let them take his life so for once he would find real peace… or maybe not, his sins would follow him into the afterlife and charge the ultimate price; an eternal existence in pain, yet again… that was nothing more than what he deserved. Warm liquid was soaking his clothes, running down his torso to his legs painting the earth beneath him red.

Why would he keep on living anyway? For whom would he live now?

The sword at his side felt heavier than ever with the blood of those innocent lives he had taken on his short lived life… so young he thought and so perverse… even so far away from the battle grounds he had known people still looked at him in fear, even little kids looked up at him in fear, he was nothing but a night terror, the face of what they hated… the sacrifice for this land's salvation.

_Maybe I should take my own life…_

The dark voices in his head offered with apparent kindness when suddenly he stopped his tracks and looked in front of him, noticing for the first time the little girl playing with flowers sitting on the ground. He made a move to retreat yet he had been so lost in thought he did not realize the amount of noise he had made, there was no retreating no one the wiser when the girl had already turned her head to look up at him in wonder.

They stared at each other for what seemed to be a long time, somehow he felt lost when looking at her… maybe it was because of the way he could see through those dark blue eyes into her soul like a window; she was clear and pure yet like a window he could also see himself reflected on those orbs… the blood and gore dried his throat when she blinked and smiled broadly.

"Hi"

He didn't answer, somehow he had forgotten how to speak and still his body refused to move.

"You weren't looking for me, where you?" she asked suddenly looking worried. He felt confused for a moment yet didn't give any sign of it and the kid smiled again after letting go a sigh.

"Don't tell anyone I'm here… I'm hiding from someone"

He felt his body begin to relax so he tried moving again while he kept his eyes on her. Her clothes were not old yet they were tattered, her legs were muddy and since she was wearing only sandals on her feet even her toes were dirty, she had long black bluish hair that reached the end of her back and it looked as if someone had worked hard on arranging it since he could still see pins holding pieces of neatly braided locks of hair while the rest was nothing short of a mess, her eyes he had seen before and were dark blue, big and expressive, her face was also covered in dirt. She couldn't be more than 9 years old.

She had resumed playing with the flowers around her so he moved to leave without a word.

"You have a pretty sword… daddy won't let me handle one until I'm older" she mentioned without looking back at him and then he noticed the wooden sword resting beside her.

"I hope one day to become a warrior like daddy… or you" this time she did turn to him and smiled a small smile that gave her, somehow, an air of more maturity than the amount her age suggested.

"Hopefully you won't have to fight when you're old enough" the words were out before he realized he had opened his mouth.

"So said my friend… she used to come here to play with the flowers, she taught me how to make a crown of daisies… Tomoe-sama was really sweet and kind to me, not like the others in the city, they don't like me at all"

At the mention of the name his body tensed up again.

_She couldn't be possibly talking about the same person…_

"Where is she now?" he asked again without thinking.

"She went back to where she belongs…" her eyes were cast of into the distance "daddy said a bad person caused her to die but my mommy used to say good persons are angels and one day they have to go back to heaven where they belong, like my mommy… Tomoe-sama had to go back to heaven"

The tension on his muscles was affecting the wounds on his body and he could feel the bandage on his cheek soaking up again… maybe he should leave… he was being chased after… he had little time before they caught up with him…

"Before Tomoe-sama died she said she was in love with someone… she said they were bonded forever… but she was sad, said she had done something terrible to him, she was going to tell him and apologize so nothing bad would happen"

He saw the ground getting closer and his knees making contact against the earth yet he didn't realize he had fallen to the ground. His eyes were getting blurry from the loss of blood.

"Do you think she made it?"

The world was spinning around him, all he could see was the girl no longer sitting on the ground playing with the flowers but walking towards him slowly.

"Did she till him the truth?"

His fingers were numb, his eye lids heavy, his breathing shallow… she walked closer to him and stood until she was mere inches apart from him while he no longer strong enough to support his weight fell on one knee.

"Did he forgive her?"

Something was pocking in his mind, his attention had to be on someone. He looked up hazy at her and she was no longer smiling instead she looked worried and again his lips moved.

"Yes… he did"

The earth turned and twirled around him so he closed his eyes to prevent the upcoming wave of nausea and when he opened them again he was no longer kneeling; he was laid down on the ground, grass and clothes were cushioning his head, a flower crown resting over his belly. He heard a shuffle of leaves and moved his head to find the girl he had seen before with the wooden sword tightly held on her hand.

"You can sleep here… no one comes here but me now"

And with that she disappeared into the tall grass. Surprisingly he no longer felt so tired and his vision had improved yet he was still in pain.

_It doesn't matter anyway… if I die what difference will it make? They will find me here and laugh… maybe they'll wonder who was the one to leave flowers on my grave… maybe she'll come back tomorrow to find me gone, taken as a trophy by them. _

The world turned pitch black suddenly but before he fell completely asleep the little girl's voice came back to his thoughts.

"_Did he forgive her?"_

Morning came yet he didn't notice it until the sun was so high in the sky its rays hit his face burning him and he turned around to try and block it.

He didn't remember leaving the blinds open, he was sure he closed them before going to sleep. Cautiously he opened one eye and then bolted sitting right up and looking around disoriented and surprised. He was not in his house and for the looks of it he was not even close to where he lived.

Looking down to his lap he noticed a flowered crown resting there, the withered flowers had a dark brown color and no scent. This brought back the memory of what had happened and with that the ache he felt in his heart, yet when he brought his hand to touch his cheek he found he no longer had a patch covering it, instead the skin was free and the wound to his surprise was already closing, further inspecting himself he took note of the new scars forming over his chest and arms… the wounds that yesterday were soaking his body in blood were nothing but marks on his skin.

Yesterday… had he slept more than a night? More than a day? The flowers on his lap spoke of a really long period, after all in such state they were usually found between the pages of a book, old and dry after days, weeks or months living between parchments.

The girl… again he remembered something she had said.

"_No one comes here but me now"_

Well, she was right since he had been able to sleep for that long without been found out… then another thought came to his mind, how could he have been sleeping for so long? Living without food or water what so ever? He didn't feel as tired as he should feel. His train of thought was interrupted when a rustling of leaves and rocks could be heard closing in and he looked around for his sword without success, so he grabbed the first thing he saw; a large rock and turned in the direction of the sound when a little girl with raven hair appeared in front of him.

"Hi!" she said enthusiastically

He didn't reply, only looked at her stunned by her mere presence.

"How are you feeling today?" she said in what she supposed was a nurse-like tone. She turned around and walked away to a bunch of grass kneaded into something like a bag from where she pulled a hakama and gi, usually a man's clothing and started dressing up.

Somehow this made him react, blushing lightly and turning his head the other way. He hadn't realized she was dripping water and only dressed with a light yukata.

"I went swimming because the sun was so bright, you should go swimming too it's so nice"

"Who are you?" after careful thinking he resolved she had to know something about him after what she said… she had to be associated with someone he knew or someone who knew about him and even thought he saw no possible evil coming from her he had to be suspicious of everyone after what happened.

"I'm Kamiya Kaoru, I'm the daughter of Kamiya Koshijirou master of the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu!" the somewhat formality in her introduction and the pride he could clearly hear while she informed him of her heritage left him stunned for a moment, her words had been true and direct, apparently she didn't fear him in the least. He had turned around after listening to her response and was at ease seeing she was already dressed and was walking closer to him.

"Do you know who I am?"

She took sit in front of him and handed him something that looked like meat buns.

"You are Tomoe-sama's beloved"

The pain in his chest made him cringed and she looked up at him in surprise. She had spoken of Tomoe the day before and now he was sure they were talking about the same person, even in death she had done something for him he didn't want or expect from her.

"How long have I slept?"

"Not much really… well, maybe a lot…" she took a bite from her bun and while she chewed on her food she spoke "I think you slept a whole day…" she continued munching on her food and he looked at her as if she had grown another head.

"How…"now he looked back on his wounds and then back at the child… something seemed awfully wrong if he had only slept for a day, yet he tried to calm himself by controlling his breathing. He had heard of "special" people who could heal other with some kind of magic… they were nothing but a myth nowadays… and in any case even back then they were looked down upon, thought of as freaks or demons, no one associated with them because they were said to be dangerous in the end.

He looked up again at her and was surprise to see she was no longer eating, she was looking at him seriously and he could see in her eyes something akin to loneliness.

"You don't like me… do you?" he still looked at her feeling something bothering him inside. "It's ok… most people don't like me, they say I bring bad luck to others… they said mommy died because of me, because I brought bad luck to her"

"How did you cure my wounds?" he finally asked trying to sound polite and calm instead of unsteady like he felt.

"Oh… I don't really know but it happens sometimes"

She was cheerful again and he felt somewhat at ease. For what he could see she meant no harm and had somehow managed to keep him hidden from his persecutors.

"Do you have a name…?" she asked having finished her bun.

He looked at her, the feeling of uneasiness gone as he only felt a sort of peace inside him he couldn't understand, as if a part of him was again one with the universe and things were falling into place, this brought him back to old times when to kill was an expression he never used, when he had a name…

"Don't you fear me?" he looked away from her trying to concentrate in his reality forcing his thoughts away from old times. "Do you know who I am?"

"I already told you" she looked away from him and her lower lip twitched and trembled into a pout "You are Tomoe-sama's beloved…" he was about to retort harshly at her when she quickly spoke again "I know what people say about you too… what you think you are, yet a person's not a job or a gift… are they?"

Looking at her his coming annoyance disappeared and he was only watching her stubbornly hide her face from him, a tear threatening to fall.

_Wicked… that's what they are called… those special persons. _

"My name's Kenshin" he said and next he gave a bite to his bun beginning to eat calmly.

She turned around to face him with a bright smile on her face.

"I like Kenshin"


	2. Courage

Hi again everyone! Second chapter! To those who have reviewed the first one I appreciate it a lot and will take into account your comments and advice.

I have being plotting this fanfiction for quite sometime so I'm pretty sure of how things are gonna go, althou I'm open for ideas most of what's gonna happen I have already planned... and I can say 2 things, I dislike tragedy and I suck at writting comedy XD anyway... I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writting.

Disclaimer: I own nothing more than a couple dogs, this computer and creativity.

**CHAPTER 2**

**Courage**

The day had passed by without much, the girl had had to turn back to the city saying it was late and her father would be pissed. He was left with more food and water, alone again with his thoughts.

The moment she was gone from sight he realized that while she had been with him the pain in his chest had become intermittent, coming and going and by the time she had left he no longer felt it.

_A strange kid indeed… Kaoru. _Suddenly a smile crept to his face little by little, it was small and barely there yet he knew of its existence. _No wonder Tomoe liked her; she's so carefree and sweet… _He looked down at the clothes she had left him with; a white hakama and dark magenta gi, she had said it was the only ones she could snatch from her father's wardrobe without calling for attention.

_Koishijirou… I've heard the name before, he's a teacher of a kenjutsu style… she did mention it; the Kamiya Kasshin… no wonder they recruited him to become part of the military protection… so he's probably also looking for me, I should be on my way soon, before they realize his daughter is associating with an assassin, he would be prosecuted and probably executed… _

His thoughts suddenly felt awkward and couldn't help but realized it had actually been a long time since the last time he had pondered over someone else's wellbeing except his own. Even with Tomoe he had always been weary, and even thought he loved her more than anything he had tried to ignore the feeling of worry her association with him brought, in his mind he had tried to blatantly lie and tell himself everything would be fine, as if Tomoe could be safe and sound because in her arms he was not the perfect assassin he was outside of them. As if he hadn't earned enough bad karma and hate from everyone who came to know him.

_Since when did I stop feeling sorry… or worrying about those I came across with? Those I caused trouble to… those sacrificed for me? They were probably too many to count… _

_Yet… if the vow to never kill again I made is of any real worth… shouldn't I start now… worrying about those I might harm if they are around me… _

_I will leave tomorrow morning, maybe leave her a note… maybe she can read. _

No matter how strong he had felt during the morning he was no longer able to keep his eyes closed. Every muscle in his body hurt and his thoughts were becoming muddled with each second more he remained awake. So having taken his decision he fell asleep rather quickly and had the best night he had had in a long time, filled with pleasant dreams he would no longer remember in the morning yet the feeling they left gave his mind the peace he had been searching for so long.

Contrary to what he had decided he stayed for a week and a few days more. Kaoru would come back every day around midmorning and leave late in the afternoon. And she would talk to him about the life at the city, the people she knew, her father and her life, always giving him clues in-between of where the guards where moving or how security inside the city was so in case he decided to leave he knew were to and how to.

"Sakura-chan is the daughter of Nanao-san… she comes everyday but leaves to go to school so I don't really see her much, I think she doesn't like to stay at the dojo"

"Don't you go to school as well Kaoru-chan" he had gotten used to using her name rather easily and even thought she dislike him calling her little he could tell she liked every time he said her name.

"Uhmmm… I used to but I stopped going… some kids were mean to me and sensei didn't really like me either so I decided I didn't want to go, I don't need it anyway… Nanao-san takes care of that now and she's a good sensei"

He must have looked unsure since she immediately pouted and a dark blush formed over her nose and under her eyes. She really did have a temper and she was particularly sensitive to anything he said.

"I'm a very good student, father praises me everyday… and Nanao-san said my calligraphy is beautiful…" she looked away with an expression of petulance but an idea suddenly popped in her head and she turned around to face him again with a smile "I'll show you tomorrow! I'll even write your name and mine… you'll see" she was up again with a newly formed crown of flowers in her hand which she again placed near his makeshift bed.

"Why the flowers?, Kaoru-chan" It was peculiar how she never asked him anything about himself more than what's your favorite color or would you like to live near the sea it was as if she understood his limits even better than he did.

"Flowers help people feel well Kenshin; they smell good and are soft and pretty… people feel better when they receive flowers" the seriousness in her face brought yet another smile to his face.

Around the 3rd day he accepted her invitation to go to the "small pond" where she would go swimming since she had been whining about how awful he smelled (she never mentioned the blood yet he knew he reeked of it) which was also a common trait for the girl; she was extremely frank, for a small child she was particularly outspoken and he could understand how that got her into trouble since she was usually complaining about how others treated her. She had no friends in the city and she was ignored by those around her, even her father who loved her or so it seemed was usually too busy to pay her attention, so she visited him and remained stuck beside him. He woke up early that day and found breakfast waiting for him.

Kaoru had already left for her morning lessons and came back dressed in a kimono he was sure had looked beautiful and proper before the girl had cleaned her way there, now there were marks of dirt everywhere, specially on her knees and arms. There was also a red mark on her cheek he was sure was no accident.

"You got into a fight again Kaoru-chan" he said not lifting his eyes from his delicious breakfast of fish and rice but he could clearly see with his mind's eye the expression on her face.

"I don't get into fights" she said stubbornly "ladies don't get into fights" her voice changed slightly and he could tell it was supposed to be a replica of the school's sensei, Hotaru, which meant she had fought with one of her students.

He remained silent while he ate, comfortable in his position near the sulking child.

"They were saying some really horrible things about me… I got angry and Hotaru-sensei said I was dishonoring my father with my actions…"again the imitation of the young teacher showed she was not so accepting of such knowledge.

"What were they saying about Kaoru-chan?"

Tears threatened to fall down her face and he considered moving onto a different topic when she spoke again.

"They said I was evil, Kenshin!" she was fully crying now "They said I brought only bad things to my family and this city… that I should go away before something really bad happened…" hunched down and her knees pulled up she moved into a somewhat fetal position and hugging her legs she let the tears fell trying to hide her face as to not make it any more obvious.

She was such a prideful girl.

"Someone told my father he should kill me or something… because of what I did to my mommy…"

Kenshin's calmed expression had changed with the words coming from her trembling form; it was easier to understand the pain of someone weaker, now that he was not fighting them for survival and power he could understand the pride of the Kamiya Kasshin style as well as sympathize with the suffering of another, a big change for the heartless monster he had become. Especially with her… even thought he had been secluded in their haven for a few days his moments with her and even his moments without her seemed to be so far away from his past, almost as if none of that had actually occurred and so talking to her in a sort of friendly manner, or eating beside her everyday or sitting beside her while they talked… even now the desire to protect and care for he felt came so naturally he was surprised it was actually coming from him.

For Kaoru his past mattered little in comparison to the happiness he provided even without him actually doing something to bring about such thing.

Before he knew it his hand was caressing her hair, softly, gently coaxing her to calm down and listen to him.

"They are afraid of what they don't understand little one, they do not understand you"

She hiccupped and trembled but did not stop crying.

"Your father will never do anything to harm you; you are his daughter after all"

Again she trembled and made a noise with her nose calming herself somewhat.

"If you under the belief of a sword to protect those you love, why would you be evil?"

The reasoning made sense to Kaoru and she seemed to have stopped crying so he moved his hand away from her but before it had retreated much she turned her head to look at him.

"Do you think I'm evil Kenshin?"

The question hanged in the air for little before he smiled, this time a broad sincere smile.

"No Kaoru-chan, I don't think you are evil"

"Why?"

Kenshin's smile disappeared; instead he cast his eyes down and frowned, his lips curving down as well. It was true his time in this haven made his sins something of the past… yet he knew who he was and what he had done too well to ignore it.

"I know evil very well Kaoru-chan… and I hope you are never tainted by it like I have"

Kaoru looked at him for a moment before she got up and dusted lightly her attire, even thought that could do little to help the vision of brownish green she made. Kenshin did not dare look up to her, somehow he knew her innocence and loving heart would not be able to bear with what he had done, her lack of information made her soft to his condition of victim, if she knew who he really was she would back down, run away and never look back… or worse, she would call those who were probably still looking for him and draw justice upon him.

"Kenshin" she called and it seemed from afar so he looked up this time to see the girl had grabbed her things and moved a few feet away from him. "What are you doing? We have to get to the pond before the sun is too high…!"

She begun moving again and before long Kenshin had grabbed his belongings and jogged to catch up with the girl. They stopped before reaching the place since she said she would practice before and he humored here when she asked him to train with her, which actually meant to basically hold another bamboo sword in front of her. Then they moved to the "pond" where he found it was not small and it wasn't a pond. Near to where they stayed was a cavern and inside a large lake of clear green water.

It was her "secret place" so he had to keep it a secret.

Kaoru's personality was cheerful and sweet; despite her easily spiked temper she was usually happy and made a conscious effort to remain calm in any situation aspiring to someday be like her mother or Tomoe who she idolized. His only complain would be that despite his attempts at teaching her of modesty she still insisted on changing in front of him, swimming naked, keeping him company whenever he tried taking a bath and taking naps close to him which ended in her most of the time hugging one of his arms, she by all means seemed to be pleased with his company, content beside him; somehow there was none of the anger he had seen in his sensei, the fear of those who fought beside him or even the sadness that accompanied his late wife, she was untarnished by his actions. With all of this even if he tried to avoid it the blood lust and dark emotions he used to feel little by little disappeared, like living in a bubble, the violent exterior didn't reach him so his heart, all damaged before, felt light; free of all the negative reasons he had for joining the army and going to fight.

He was happy.

Finally managing to get a moment alone he took off his clothes completely and dived under water towards the center of the lake, he didn't move far but far enough to feel secluded, surrounded by walls of rocks and the bottomless pool of water around him, beneath him. After swimming a little more he moved back to the shore and grabbed one of the bottles Kaoru had given him, she said those were hers but he could use them, he had considered just using water but the little thing had demanded him to smell "good" so he agreed to use some to wash his body and so he did, later applying some to his hair making sure to take off all the grime and dried blood from it, then he went back under the water after while emerging feeling clean and fresh it was then that he saw the kid smiling happily while sitting on the edge of the pool.

Immediately he felt color rush to his face, he wondered how being raised mostly by a man could make a girl so at ease around naked men… or men in general, he was sure she would grow up to make many of them fall head over heels for her.

"Kaoru-chan, I thought I had asked to wait for me outside"

"I was getting bored Kenshin… and you took too long…" he could tell it was only an excuse; she was a really poor liar.

Kenshin moved closer to the shore then further to the side so he could grip the edge without giving the kid too much of a view.

"You know, monks use water to purify themselves?"

He managed to pull his arms over the ground and support part of his weight so he would remain still and still his lower half would remain under water.

"They say water can purify our hearts and so if you've ever done something bad it can help you to be forgiven and to forgive yourself"

Again her words of wisdom seemed too mature for her… those words, could it be possible for him to really be forgiven and be clean of the blood on his soul? Looking back at his side towards Kaoru he noticed she was right beside him with a small smile on her lips, he saw her hands moving up his head and in seconds he felt the cold liquid travel down his spine and face.

By the time he was able to open his eyes Kaoru was no longer there. He pulled out of the water and changed into the magenta gi and white hakama, they fit him slightly off but with each passing day he felt they suit him better than all those he had worn before. Moving out of the cave he finally found his companion, resting over a rock she was dressed in a light summer yukata with her hair free and wild in the air.

She moved to guide him back to her haven and he heard her talk back to him one last time that day.

"If you need to come back and bath some more you can… just don't tell anyone"

On the 10th day, they were sitting comfortably on their usual spot surrounded by flowers and grass around noon eating noodles and fish with vegetables.

"You should cut your hair a little Kenshin, it's growing too long and soon you won't be even able to look at your hands" Kaoru said between bites.

"You're right Kaoru-chan, I might need a little…" he's words died in his throat when a low growl far away was heard; experience told him it was an explosion… a big one in the direction of the city. He turned around to look at Kaoru and found her face pale, her blue eyes wide and fearful.

"Ken… shin…" she mumbled and said something between teeth he couldn't understand.

Without another thought Kaoru got up letting her plate and food fall over the grass and run as fast as she could towards the city.

He felt time pass second after long second cold sweat beginning to trickle down his back… it seemed as if it had been a long time since he had run towards or from something, spending his time alone or with Kaoru in the clearing had given him something he had yearn for so long to have, he froze for a moment, fear was returning and before he could let it sink in he jumped up from his sitting position and ran after the girl. She was nowhere to be found; even with his godlike speed he could not catch up to her yet he was able to follow her lead back to the city.

After several minutes that felt like hours he arrived at the city entrance already engulfed in flames, he could see people running out from different places; some badly hurt others not so much, there were bandits attacking the men trying to defend the city and others were stealing whatever they could from each house before setting fire on them.

He walked around the city looking for Kaoru's house as she had described it until he found the half burnt pieces of it, he could see the entrance with the "Kamiya" wooden sign still burning on the ground and he approached it, putting the fire out and looking at it.

_Where is she… _he's mind screamed beginning to panic, a sense of dread creeping over his heart, fear for his little friend was demanding he turned back to his darker self. Trying to think again where to look another thought crossed his mind "_Her father…"_

He looked around for the troops, walking through several streets surrounding what could have been the police force building. Having no luck he decided to go back to the Kamiya dojo on the other side of the city, it was located far away from the city so he had already wasted enough time, he turned back on his steps but before he ran he saw something between debris, he found a few white horses dead on the ground and after approaching them enough he was able to distinguish a large man with dark black hair pinned by one of the dead animals. He tried pushing the huge animal off yet the dead body was even heavier than when the animal was alive… it wouldn't budge.

"My daughter… please, my daughter… they took her"

He heard the man's words and looked at him his own eyes wide in fear.

"Please…"

There was a split second their eyes met and there was nothing else to say.


	3. Promise

Hi everyone! Thank you very much for the follows and favorites, I really appreaciate them. This chapter took me a little more to write but here it is! a little late... but yey!

I hope the story doesn't feel too slow for you guys... I'm not really sure what's slow nice or slow bothersome so... not to mention I had to make a little base here for the rest of the story, hopefully you're all enjoying it, or in any case please R&R leaving me your comments and advices.

Now, on with the show!

Disclaimer: I own Kenshin Himura... in my dreams... he's usually a vampire there and we do very naughty things ^^

**CHAPTER 3**

**Promise**

_Where is she… _he's mind screamed beginning to panic, a sense of dread creeping over his heart, fear for his little friend was demanding he turned back to his darker self. Trying to think again where to look another thought crossed his mind "_Her father…"_ he looked around for the troops, walking through several streets surrounding what could have been the police force building. Having no luck he decided to go back to the Kamiya dojo on the other side of the city, it was located far away from the city so he had already wasted enough time, he turned back on his steps but before he ran he saw something between debris, he found a few white horses dead on the ground and after approaching them enough he was able to distinguish a large man with dark black hair pinned by one of the dead animals. He tried pushing the huge animal off yet the dead body was even heavier than when the animal was alive… it wouldn't budge.

"My daughter… please, my daughter… they took her"

He heard the man's words and looked at him his own eyes wide in fear.

"Please…"

There was a split second their eyes met and there was nothing else to say.

He didn't need to hear anything anymore, in fact before he could listen to another word he turned to follow the marks on the ground; they were many and quite different making it hard to pin point which one had Kaoru. Moving further away from the fallen man and closer to the western exit of the city he found a piece of Kaoru's gi, stuck on a large stick covered with blood. Thoughts muddled, trampling one over the other, his vision became blurry, heart pounding on his ears he barely registered where his body was taking him yet as the scent of blood drowned any other and the panic settled in his gut turning rather quickly to a vicious desire to kill he once again trusted his instincts to tell him where to go; this was a game he was used to, the game of chase and kill.

He could only see red and feel only the cold shiver running up his spine converting the blood running through his body into gall. Before long he found a group of bandits and thieves that looked to be around 50 or 70 covered in hoods and most of them mounting black horses. After attacking the place they had set all houses and government buildings on fire, their action spoke of savages but they also seemed to be looking for something. A group on foot were moving a large group of girl onto a cart, most of them were tied together with ropes, some of them; too young to understand much of what was happening were passed out cold or calmly obeying the men getting clumsily into the cart, the others were moving slowly but without much of a fight. Among them was Kaoru beside a group of young girls and women between 10 and 15 tied to each other; one of the bandits had Kaoru pinned against another, she was not yet tied up and was putting as much of a fight as she could.

"You're quite spirited but I bet you'll play nicely with us once we teach you a little" one of them teased and tried to grab her yet she trashed again and again, kicking and writhing like a cat in their hold. It was difficult for them to keep a good grip since she was small and had much more energy and elasticity in her body, yet they were many and she was starting to feel tired, the blood soaking her ragged clothing was spreading quickly mixed with sweat and mud.

Three closed in on her managing to hold her legs down and tying her with a rope before they pinned her down on the ground to tie her hands behind her back.

"Let go! Let go!" she bit one and screamed as hard as she could "BASTARDS! LET ME GO!"

Suddenly the pressure on her was gone and she looked up to see her captors were tense and still; one of them was lying on the ground looking lifeless.

"Let her go, immediately" she recognized the voice and smiled as tears were falling down her eyes.

"Kenshin…" she pleaded and was soon rewarded when a few more of them fell down to the ground without much fight, the others drew their swords and fought him but couldn't hold him back.

No matter how many were slowly gathering around him, coming from the larger group, he didn't dare lift his vision to look at her afraid of what his eyes would betray; anger, hate, fear… having known her for so little he was not sure how to show the darkness in his heart to a creature so small and untainted. His movements swift and deadly, another one of them fell to the ground coughing blood when he turned and saw the young girl jump kicking another one trying to pull her towards the cart effectively throwing him to the ground and falling to the ground face first with a grunt. Turning on instinct to help her he was able to finally glance at her face and saw her eyes filled with tears but also a smile.

She was happy to see him… he was here to protect, not to kill.

_Kenshin… _he saw her lips move like casting a spell on him making his muscles already tired fill with strength, his vision no longer red was clear and his thought coherent and levered, he felt stronger and faster moving against everyone of them, even those on horse couldn't stand a chance against him, he was fearless, he would win no matter what.

A familiar sound went of beside him and he turned again to look at Kaoru feeling something was amiss. She was no longer smiling; her face was even paler than before and her lips were open in a silent scream, eyes open as if under a great amount of pain, then a white light engulfed him for a second and when he could see again he was a few good meters away from where he had been, lying on the floor, he felt blood flowing out of him; he didn't feel tired anymore yet he couldn't move his limbs. He was lying on his stomach and barely managed to move his face to the side and scan the area around him finding Kaoru lying on the floor a few meters from him beside a dead horse.

More bandits came, dressed slightly different but because of his weapons he recognized their profession… assassins. One of them tall with silver hair mounting a black horse, seemed to be the leader of the group. He dismounted and moved closer to where Kaoru was, she was now getting up on shaky legs.

_She's alive… _for a moment he felt tranquility setting in his stomach when he remembered the bandits had tried to snatch her before. That meant they wanted her alive.

She moved slightly back and the tall man offered her hand.

She shook her head in denial yet the man's posture didn't change. Turning her head she looked back at his beaten form and Kenshin was able to see the tears glistening in her eyes, whatever the leader was telling her was not pleasant and a freezing discomfort settled in his stomach at the thought of what might happen. He tried to command his body to move yet the message never arrived as his limbs continue sprawled beside him.

She had screamed his name several times trying to run to him while the man held her by an arm, he could not make out her words but he knew on instinct what she would be yelling.

_Kenshin!_

She was trembling, he could see that and the man was speaking to her something he couldn't understand or even hear. Then he waved his subordinates away and extended a hand again to the girl but she moved her head in negative insisting on something.

Kenshin tried to move again receiving the same answer from his body, he wanted desperately to crawl towards her, protect her from the danger coming against her. Yet his body betrayed him.

Moving his head slightly he surveyed their surroundings to find corpses but no weapon. When had they cleaned the place empty of them? Had he closed his eyes at some point? Turning again towards Kaoru he was surprised to see her running to him until she was in front of him, kneeling down she pulled out a flower from the inside of her gi. Having her so close he was able to see her tattered clothing soaked in blood; the right sleeve of her gi was slashed (probably the piece of clothing he found before), her entire arm was covered in blood; the cause a nasty wound on her forearm still bleeding. There were also a cut on her left side and bruises on her face and neck.

He tried telling her to take care of the wound yet his lips didn't move.

"It's nothing… I'll be fine…" she said with a small smile.

He tried to tell her to run his instincts demanding she searched for a place to hide even thought he couldn't move a muscle to protect her. Even if she ran with all she had they would caught up with her and maybe hurt her even more.

In a second she moved her tiny body to cover his from something. It was funny he thought. The small child was trying to protect him from harm; he, the battousai, the man slayer yet this innocent creature seemed prepared to give her life for him.

"Don't hurt him or I'll kill myself!" she spoke with determination.

"You have my word" There was amusement in the words spoken by the man now kneeling down beside him but there was also truth. He would not attack him and seemed interested in keeping Kaoru alive as well.

Kenshin heard the rustle of the grass beside him and soon felt the pressure of a pair of hands moving him. It didn't hurt and soon he was on his back, then his head was moved up and down slowly to rest over a bundle of clothes he had not realize Kaoru had with her. She placed his hands at both his sides and cleaned his face with what looked like a towel; it was drenched in water and felt cool against his fevered skin.

He continued looking at her, words dying as he felt his consciousness slipping away. He turned his face up as much as he could and looked to the side to find the man still sitting there. He wanted to memorize his face, wanted to remember how he looked like to look for him later, if he survived, that is yet the assassin had his face partially covered and his clothing let no mark on visible on his body, only his eyes and hair. Long, straight and black was his hair tied in a long braid except for a small lock of hair that clung to the right side of his face tied together with a gold ringed clasp and his eyes were a bluish gray like rain water, cold yet refreshing. Surprisingly those didn't look like the eyes of a killer.

"You'll be fine… just sleep for a little… no one will find you here" he remembered the first time they met when she had left him with a crown of flowers telling him the same thing.

He turned back around and tried again to tell to take care of herself, to run away, run as fast as she could but again, his body didn't react to his orders, his lips were sealed and they seemed stuck together forever, nothing more than a sort of whimper like sound came out of them and he saw how her eyes watered again, her lips trembling.

"I can't… I…" she was crying and he could see the pain in her eyes yet she smiled "I'll see you later… alright? Just rest and I'll see you again" her smile faltered and she got up and left running away in an attempt to not show any more tears. Kenshin moved his head to follow but was still able to hear the man beside him moving closer to him until he felt his breathing against his ear.

"Do not worry Battousai, the girl will live"

And with those words coolly spoken he left walking slowly until he reached Kaoru who followed him until they reached his horse, there helped her climb onto the animal before he climbed up himself. Quickly changing from a light stroll to a dead run, the horse, the girl and the bandit disappeared from his view. Sleep caught him quickly after.

_Kaoru… _

For what seemed like forever his thoughts couldn't make sense and he fought to remain awake for a while longer until he was able to finally open his eyes and feeling the cold air he realized how heavy and raw he felt. There was an urgency in the back of his mind to get up and move so he fought against the drowsiness coming, to turn on his side and sit up, it took him again a long time before he was finally able to sit and in the end he had to crawl backwards to support his body against a tree a few steps behind him. He tried touching his head yet he found his arm didn't have the strength to lift his hand that high so he let his head fall back against the trunk beside him.

The air was cold but the bright light of the sun hurting his eyes which he closed to protect them and quickly fell unconscious again.

The sun was no longer lighting the sky the next time he woke up, the moon was up and he was glad because he felt parched already to have the sun increase the feeling. First he noticed he was no longer in the clearing with Kaoru and after a few moments of a pounding headache he remembered the bandits and the destruction of the city. He tried making sense of what he could remember in an attempt to recognize where he knew those assassins from but nothing came to mind, he was still too weak and realized he had to try and go back to the city before he had no energy to sustain himself.

Moving his limbs this time didn't seem so difficult and as he moved up against the tree to finally stand he saw a flower fall from his gi to the forest floor. It was dry, no longer white and it had a brownish tinge on the ends of its petals as well as the center. He remembered Kaoru had kept bringing him flowers and he would wake up to find them in the same state or alike yet this time it was not a crown of flowers but only one adorned with what looked like twigs and long leaves in an intricate knot, further studying the ground beneath him he notice the patch of grass he had been resting on was no longer green or grass for that matter but brown and practically just dirt.

It was a long walk from where he was to the city, his left leg was stiff and he found necessary to use the first stick he found as a cane to support his weight and not punish his other limb unnecessarily. After reaching the city he slowly made his way towards the first well he found, it was near the market area, there he drank as much water as he could when he remembered the girl's father.

There were people walking around as slowly as him, some trying to take whatever they could from the spoils abandoned by the bandits and others were trying to gather the dead and the wounded in carts to bury or to treat. Following them he found himself back the dojo's burnt down entrance were helped by a few poles they had been able to make a tent were to protect the injured from the elements. They were just a few people, mostly young kids and young soldiers but he found the one he was looking for laying away from the rest of them in a makeshift bed, covered by a thick blanket and still breathing.

"Do you need something?" a voice behind him startled him and he turned around quickly making the stiffness of his legs hurt him enough to produce a gasp out of his lips.

"There's no need for haste or worry… I may not be a doctor but I can take care of that leg of yours"

Looking up from his throbbing appendage he saw the young woman talking to him; if you call her a woman. Even thought his voice sounded mature she was barely his high and was probably just 15 years old, barely out of childhood and had the confidence to treat his leg? He wondered how this was the change he had expected to bring to the world.

"I…" he looked down at his hands still holding the cane and his legs and frowned feeling hollow "This unworthy one is fine… do not worry yourself over me, this unworthy one just came looking for a old friend to make sure he is fine" he was about to turn back around when she spoke again, this time there was no more confidence in her voice, just sadness.

"I'm sorry…"

This time Kenshin did look up and was able to see a faint glimmer of tears on her pale white face.

"He will not live past tonight… I'm afraid he's been waiting to hear of his daughter but I doubt he'll survive to get the news he awaits"

Kenshin's eyes grew big and his hand holding the cane hardened its grip on it until his knuckles turned white.

"I'm afraid most girls were saved… but there were no one like the description he gave us… and it's already being a couple days since they took her, only God know where she could be"

"Kaoru…"

The image of the girl's tears as she knelt in front of him and the same girl going away with that man made him turn his face down to hide the anger he felt.

"So you knew them… Koshijiro-san is the friend you came searching for"

_Koshijiro_

He merely nodded and she guided him with her hand towards the man still resting. As they got closer he was able to see the shaky pattern of his breaths and the pale almost transparent tone of his face. Then he was able to see the similarities he had missed before, the hair even thought touched by old age was still mostly a bluish black, straight and long, he did not have bangs like Kaoru but instead had shorter strands at each side of his face, her nose and eyebrows were the same and he could see the faint calluses on his hands from wielding a sword, in the same places he had felt on Kaoru's hands.

He was indeed Kaoru's father and he would die that night.

"Do not tell her about Kaoru… or if you do, tell her she is safe so he can rest in peace…"

"Thank you… ah"

"Megumi… Takani Megumi…" the young woman smiled sadly and turned to leave. "It's funny, I was suppose to arrive today to prepare the clinic for a possible battle, I was suppose to come prepare for possible wounds… to train under Genzai-sensei's… ah… how funny it is to have come out of a massacre to enter another"

It seemed she had talked more to herself than to him this time and with that she left them alone.

Kenshin knelt down with great difficulty, stilling his body with his back straight and his shoulders back he breathed in to calm his chaotic feelings when he felt a hand pressed against his knee. Looking down he saw the eyes of the man no longer asleep. They were a dark grey.

"You…" he said in a breathless voice "I remember you"

"Koshijirou-dono, I… I couldn't"

"It's alright, you owe me nothing…" he licked his lips and tried to smile "I knew she was up to something with all the extra buns she said she was eating… she was always up to something"

An attempt to laugh brought a fit of coughs that ended in a whizzing sound from his lungs.

"Do not push yourself Koshijirou-dono, you must save strength"

"Its fine…" he said sarcastically "Despite what that lady doctor says I know I was only bidding time until you came back…"

Eyes impossibly larger Kenshin felt his mouth dry and a bitter taste form in his throat, threatening him to vomit the water he had drank before.

"They took her" he said in a hoarse voice before he could stop himself.

"Aah…" Turning his head back at Kenshin he smiled kindly at him.

"Do not punish yourself for what happened, she wouldn't blame you and I would not blame this on you… I can already see what my daughter found in you…"

"This unworthy one…"

"Do not belittle yourself so easily young man… even I am not ignorant to the past that burdens you yet I can see it in your eyes that there was reason and an answer in you to what Kaoru did… I only hope that this means a change in your path and that you live… live as long as you can to honor the gift she gave you…"

He closed his eyes once more and with a shaky hand pulled out a locket from the inside of his sleeve.

"If you ever find… her…" Kenshin looked down as he collected the metal piece from his cold hands. "Give her this, it's her dowry…. It is hers… as well as… my sword"

Holding Koshijirou's hands in his Kenshin nodded as he promised.

"I'll give it to her… I promise"

The man smiled again but his eyes didn't open again, soon without energy the hand still held by Kenshin grew limb and fell to the floor, lifeless.

"Is he…"

"Yes" he answered at the feminine voice asking the obvious behind him then he got up slowly supporting himself in his cane and moved to leave.

"Let me have a look at your leg… please, it could be dangerous if you leave it like that" her expression was calmed but he could see the tension on her eyes like a pleading.

"It's nothing of worry Megumi-dono, this unworthy one…"

"What's your name?" surprised he looked at her as if confused.

"I cannot call you… well… you every time and you know my name…"

"Kenshin… my name is Kenshin"

With that he sat down and the young woman moved to check on his legs soon going back and forth to bring tools to immobilize it, she said something about it being almost broken and him remaining still for a while or he could really break it. Soon he was not listening to a word she said, he could only gaze at the starts thinking of where Kaoru was and if she was looking at the same starlight sky.

"Ready Ken-san… you'll be good as new in a few days"

"Thank you, Megumi-dono" he smiled gently as he was getting used to and turn to get up again when she placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You can rest here, a few have come from the nearby village with food and stuff… they'll go back in a few days with a cart or two so you could hop on them instead of walking"

He knew she really wished him to rest and thought he would be of no use to Kaoru if he could not walk properly so he decided to nod in agreement and only moved to sat down more comfortably on a makeshift bed. Soon after Megumi returned with bowl of soup and bread

"You know, you have the most interesting eye color Ken-san, where are you from?"

For a moment he wondered how the child had not mentioned anything about his golden eyes when she had been so interested in his red hair. He only smiled sadly at the memory and thought of the nature of his bright colored eyes.

"I have never seen violet eyes on anyone…"

Opening his eyes he turned to stare at Megumi as if she had grown another head and a couple hands as well.

Looking at the flask with water she had handed him he was able to look at his reflection for the first time after this ordeal started. They were indeed a deep violet color. Covering them with his left hand he couldn't help the tears that begun falling one after the other and was soon openly crying.

_Honor the gift Kaoru gave you…_

He, the battousai, the man slayer, an assassin feared by everyone… had no longer the eyes of a killer.


	4. Princess

Hello everyone! it's me with yet another chapter! yey! I wanna thanks again everyone reading, reviewing, favorit...ing... and following this story, it's quite motivating and flattering, I hope you find this chapter to suit your liking as well as the others.

This story is the last of a group of "tests" I had been doing about the idea of "meeting someone" and then after a long period of time you find them again under different circumstances... I think it makes things interesting from the beginning and I hope I get to publish the other "tests", how are you liking the idea so far? I've seen this in other fanfics and it's usually... nice. Ne?

Anyway... disclaimer...: See chapter 1... please enjoy, read and review, pls no flames only constructive criticism or flattery... ^^

**Chapter 4**

**Princess**

Waking up always hurt; the sun shining brightly up in the sky hurt her eyes like needles, her sore legs shook and cramped the moment they touched the cold wooden floor and to make matters worse there was never hot water for her bath. Why was there never ever hot water for her to bath? She didn't know but it hurt like pins and needles all over her body, especially her back. After months away traveling from place to place in missions she at least wanted to heat her sore muscles for a while and enjoy some peace and quiet.

Moving groggily out of her bed already regretting the loss of warmth she made her way through the bedroom and the screen doors of her bedroom to the next room where she grabbed the first piece of clothing she found and tied it tightly to her thin shape, it was a light summer yukata and she didn't bother fixing it securely to her waist since no man would dare come closer to her rooms. The only way anyone knew she was a girl or still acknowledge such fact was the fact that their lord refused to let her live in the barracks where she would have felt more comfortable… were she used to live, especially after the proposal.

_Stupid rules… _she thought while growling under her breath.

She was about to open the door out of her dorms to go the bath house when someone else opened it for her jumping in her haste to enter and effectively knocking her down with a loud thump.

"Misao-sama!" the intruder cried while falling; too late to stop herself she cried even louder the moment her knees collided with the hard flooring, Misao had landed backwards but made no sound of discomfort while the intruder couldn't help but whimper while rolling in pain at the bump already forming on both her knees.

"Aaah!" either way Misao screamed in annoyance "Damned kid! ... How many times have I told you not to enter my room like that?" Despite her small stature and skinny complexion the young leader's voice commanded power over the young girl who was trying her hardest to kneel and bow with both knees still hurting. Misao was also known to have the patience of a kid and certainly the servant had pushed her buttons one too many times already.

"I'm very sorry Misao-sama yet it was a… an emergency… Hiko-sama sent me here to call you"

This seemed to change Misao's rage instantaneously bringing forth an expression of suspicion to her face.

_This doesn't sound good_…

"Me...? but I just returned… what is it this time?"

Moving up from the floor Misao helped the other get up as well and together they returned to the main room where Misao pulled a chest open to bring out her usual fighting gear after which she shoved a hand under a pile of clothes from where she pulled a pair of sandals. The young girl following her continued talking while she helped Misao arrange the equipment she would need to travel.

Misao didn't like her working hours and weird schedules yet she couldn't complain anyway, she knew as their lord Hiko Seijuro was not a man to waste words, if he had sent for her it meant he indeed needed her assistance. Still, being the bearer of such news to the young leader was not something pleasant, as her personal servant she knew the woman would be in a foul mood when she returned so she hurried her next words and tried to convey only the necessary information.

"It's the lady we've been expecting… her convoy should have arrived this morning but she never came, instead a messenger barged in the middle of a war counsel informing of an attack; the lady's convoy was ambushed by Yukishiro's army… (if you could call that group of murderers an army)" she said the last part under her breath but turning to face her master with her weapons in hand she continued "and have forced them to move back behind our lines, we're not sure of the situation but Aoshi-sama has already sent the Oniwabanshu to take care of business"

"If Aoshi-sama has already sent someone why am I being summoned?"

She was tying her obi around herself when she gave the young maid an annoyed look.

"You are to safely retrieve Lady Amakusa from the enemy and bring her here… she was taken in the middle of the struggle by a group of them and because of the fight the Oniwabanshu have being unable to rescue her… Hiko-sama has already approved this and even Kenshin-sama is on his way here… unfortunately he and Aoshi-sama have yet to reach the border and would not make it in time to save the lady… she would already be too far inside the enemy's territory for us to be able to do anything…"

Dressed in her light outfit she pulled a small band to tie her hair, there was no time to fix it into her customary braid so instead she merely brought it together with a band behind her head in a high ponytail, it gave her the appearance of a young boy instead of a girl in her 15's.

"Misao-sama… if you would excuse my boldness but… shouldn't you be wearing the new gear Kenshin-sama assembled for you?"

Without looking back to the girl Misao threw her hair back completely and pulled out a cape from another chest that covering her body entirely.

"It will not be useful this time… and Kenshin will **excuse** **me** for preferring my everyday uniform instead of that… thing… he calls uniform, I'm sure the idiot hasn't even seen the attire… asking Kamatari of all people to design that damned thing…"

Turning to grab her items already inside a bag from the hands of the bewildered girl Misao showed her the obviously embarrassed red shade of her cheeks, but the servant was smart enough not to comment something, everyone knew of the petite warrior's temperament and something told her she should have a look at said outfit before saying anything else about it.

Instead she smiled her usual timid smile.

"Very well then, I will be on my way…"

Misao pulled the bag's handle over her head and placed the weight to rest over her right shoulder while she moved out of the rooms this time heading in the opposite direction of the bath house towards the main exit, again the young maid followed.

"Your horse is outside waiting for you as well as a the messenger who will take you to the disappearance point from where you alone will follow the lady's trail"

"Thanks Tsubame-chan" after saying this the slender form of the girl blurred as she ran to the exit quickly jumping over the horse waiting for her and quickly pulling the reins, she was off in a matter of seconds.

"Safe journey Misao-sama, I will be praying for your safe return… as well as the lady's"

Tsubame remained looking at the gate's wooden door feeling extremely edgy, everyone trusted the abilities of the ex leader of the Oniwabanshu but she couldn't help the feeling of fear settling in her gut every time she went off on an assignment, after all, she was all she had for a family after her mother died.

It took her enough to reach the location of the attack and watching how the skill of the Oniwabanshu reduced the threat rather quickly she frowned, for her taste it was rather too quickly. Something was off and she could feel it.

The messenger approached her and after waving the rest of the group a sign he mounted his own horse and guided Misao to the next point; it was the entrance of the forest dividing the territories. The invaders had managed to move that far back in a matter of hours, either they were well organized or had some help, she was liking this less by the minute.

Back when the civil war begun everyone had an army and everyone believed themselves to be worthy of dominating the territories they were fighting over. In the short life she had lived Misao had seen her fare share of battles but she had been too young to witness all that went down back then, she had been too little and was protected from all that by the leader of the Oniwabanshu himself. In the end a samurai named Hiko Seijuro became lord their feudal piece of land, the man had not only defeated those trying to take possession of the lands but also won the loyalty of those he saved from the destruction, quite easily she believed, considering the massive physique and tough attitude him possessed, anyone already believed him to be immortal or something. She knew better and Hiko knew his time for war and politics was even thought not over, no longer in its prime, a heir was needed and that was how to ensure a solid alliance he would marry his adoptive son to the daughter of another powerful lord.

Shougo Amakusa, the lord of the west was already powerful when the war begun and only increased his lands as well as his strength until he became the strongest ally of the war, Hiko had been fast in gaining the man's power for his own in an alliance to put a stop to the endless bloodshed the country had been placed under. Amakusa remained lord of the west and Hiko was left to rule the South. Now, the lands southeast, where the attack to the lady's convoy had taken place are mostly desert; nothing much outside of dunes of sand and rocks, too much heat, too little water and the only contact with life were the dangerous poisonous creatures living under the deceiving nature of the desert's floor. Nobody ventured there without good reason and kidnapping a princess wasn't a good reason to risk their lives since they would by no means make it out of the desert alive with her… or with her alive… except… with someone's help.

And they had made to the forest, a few kilometers and they would have crossed the border into Yukishiro's territory a few good hours and they would be unreachable. How could this have happened? Taking down a convoy like the princess had was no easy task since she was already traveling with heavy protection yet they had managed to fight them **and** the Oniwabanshu for a night and part of the morning, they were obviously stalling but, how were they able to stall anything to begin with?

Reaching the separation point Misao dismounted her horse and signaled the messenger to leave. She didn't have to move forward for too long before she saw the small group of soldiers. After careful consideration she decided to continue on foot and soon she found the small feminine part of the convoy in the middle of a fight with a group of ten soldiers in a very bad mood.

"We can't take them all!"

"There's no way to tell them apart… we don't even know how she really looks"

"This is stupid!"

Looking at them Misao couldn't help but find the situation highly entertaining. This group of idiots had considered easy to capture just 1 girl and having taken the situation so lightly had been forced to take the carriage completely since the young princess never traveled without her small court of maids who of course looked very much like her or at least alike enough to confuse. She quickly spotted 3 frightened very young looking girl who didn't speak a word no matter how much they screamed and another 2 inside the protection of the carriage, one seemed to be under the effects of the abrasive heat and the other was somewhat affected but quite more lively, or agitated would be the word?

"Anyway… we cannot kill them"

Said another but this seemed to enlighten one of the men who smiling evilly at the girls stood up and walked towards the youngest of them. Pulling her up by her hair despite the efforts of the others to keep her inside their group he then pulled her up face to face with a grin that made her shiver and cry.

"Then we will enjoy ourselves with them until one of the talk, they might be trained to take the pain of a torture but will they last that long with the pleasure I will give them?" the cries of the girl were getting louder with his words. Misao considered interrupting the brute before he could do anything when the lively creature inside the carriage jumped out throwing a rock at the soldier holding the girl effectively hitting him on the side of his head, causing him to dump the girl on the floor.

"Leave her alone" she yelled as she walked a couple steps forward. She was mostly covered except for her long black hair and looked ready to kill the man.

"Or what?!" he yells pulling out a small curved sword from his waist but the girl is not moved.

"All of us are maidens, piece of horse shit…" she said with a grin "and if you desire the power of the princess she must remain a maiden as well" smiling broadly while she moved closer to their kidnapper "it is a fact that the princess must not know the touch of a man unless she desires to lose the power she possesses… forever" the man growled in anger but choosing to ignore his flare she turned half around to look at the forest of so Misao thought until she saw highly surprised how without moving her face she looked in her direction and made a discreet shake of her hand signaling her to wait for something.

_Wait for what… _

"I'll touch **you **with my sword then" in a second the soldier yelled in anger and moved his arm backwards to hit her when the young one finally out of her fear induced trance kicked his shin harshly while twisting her body to stand up, ending a fighting stance; managing to throw him of balance with her attack the others witnessing the events rushed to help his comrade. Everything afterwards happened in a matter of seconds yet Misao witnessed it like in slow motion.

Taking her opportunity to run from her hiding place and throw her kunais she attacked the couple near the first victim, hitting straight on the two marks before they could help their friend, knocking down the two and moving quickly to hit the others running in her direction. Her movements were graceful as her feet barely touched the floor hitting no deathly blow but soundly rendering her victims useless, sprawled on the forest floor. Turning around to see the other 3 she was missing she found them down along with the others unconscious soldiers around her lively new friend. Looking up she saw the girl responsible helping the young kid get up from the ground, she had been knocked down again but was smiling broadly. Turning around to face her, the youngest tensed and moved to defend the other slightly behind her when the other placed a hand on her shoulder.

"You saw me"

Misao was the first to talk and after a murmured order the youngest moved to help the other 2 still in shock and the other walked a few paces closer as she spoke in answer.

"Do not feel embarrassed, I have great eye sight… that's why I'm a guardian of the princess" her tone was light and friendly. "You came per order of Hiko-sama, am I correct?"

"Yes… aah… he expected you this morning and he kindda hates lateness…" Misao couldn't help but feel at ease with the light tone of voice used by the young woman and was surprise to find it more mature than her face suggested. Teasing came instantly to her words as a reflex to her suave attitude.

"Then let us be on our way" walking towards the carriage she again spoke in another language to the others who immediately went to the aid of the last one inside the transport. "These were supposed to reunite with another group farther ahead and I believe they were already late" she said motioning to the group still unresponsive on the ground.

"Well… what are we waiting for…"

Before she could think of a plan to carry them all on one horse (she was also not expecting an entourage) one of them had returned with a couple of horses.

"You can call me Rue, these are Tae, Suzume, Ayame and my fainted friend here is Kao"

Looking surprised again Misao couldn't help but ask "Then… none of you is the princess"

"Of course one of us is the princess… yet you will have to guess who before I tell you" smiling wider she climbed up on one of the horses and pulled Kao up while signaling the others to follow. "Take us to the palace then…" she looked back at her with her eyebrows up, waiting for a reply then formalities kicked back into the young warrior maiden.

"Misao, Makimachi Misao"

"Very well, Misao-san, take the lead"

Surprised yet again only two of the remaining girls climbed on the other horse but the last one, the young child she had said to be called Ayame didn't get on either hers (Misao's) or another and instead remained over her feet.

"Are you planning to leave her behind?" she asked Rue in confusion.

"Ayame does not trust horses Misao-san, you will excuse her if she prefers to run"

Considering they knew what they were doing but still taking her precautions she started with a light stroll and after watching the kid seriously running behind them she broke into a run the moment after leaving the forest. In general, the ride through the forest and desert was mostly in silence and they only stopped at the place of their ambush to signal what could be saved to be taken to the palace by those who survived the attack.

"A new wardrobe will be order…" she heard Rue murmur with a frown as they continued their travel.

Upon entering the city they slowed their pace and moved through the market slowly since Rue asked them to stop at a few shops to purchase a much needed change in wardrobe.

"We will require a place to adjust our attire before we enter the palace, if you don't mind Misao-san, we would greatly appreciate it"

"Wouldn't it be better to change inside the palace?" Misao countered.

"It would not do… I apologize for the inconvenience thou... it will not take long, I promise"

There was a slight playful tone in her voice and Misao was quite interested by the mystery surrounding the princess, enough to follow the lead of the woman beside her and play her game as well.

"Alright… I guess we can stop for a second"

Their arrival was much calmer than expected. Instead of the royal fanfare they had prepare for the welcome party that morning there was only a row of servants patiently bowing in waiting for her to enter the grounds. Misao dropped from her horse lightly giving the reins of the animal to Tsubame who was bowing along with the others with a huge smile as always.

"Okaeri… Misao-sama" Misao smiled at the girl and softly ruffled the hair on top of her hair. The anger from that morning already gone, replaced by the warmth the welcome always seemed to fill her with. For years she had traveled without a path to follow, for so long she had stray from the roads back home that now every time she went back from a mission hearing those words meant something more than just the end and victory of a travel but the fact that she had someone waiting for her, a family waiting for her and looking up at the figure waiting patiently, standing proudly after the long row of servants she smiled in greeting.

_Home… _

"Aoshi-sama!" she screamed in elation while she run the last few meters until she was face to face with her beloved.

"Welcome home Aoshi-sama… I'm so glad you're back and well"

The man simply smiled, if you could call the slight upwards movement of his lips a smile and made an affirmative sound to the girl.

"That should be his line little weasel" a teasing voice called from behind Aoshi.

"Megumi? What are you doing here? I thought you were still away from town… with the pregnancy and all…"

Megumi smiled… more like grinned and laughed her best teasing laugh as she looked to the convoy making their entrance.

"I was not going to miss Ken-san's engagement for the world… and I was told by Hiko-san that I might be needed to aid the princess if she were wounded in any form"

"Well… if you can recognize her…" Misao retorted with a grin "they wouldn't tell me who she was"

At that moment Hiko Seijuro made his appearance at the gate to receive their guest with his face smirking like always. There were no words of praise or even a glance of acknowledgement but Misao knew he didn't need to give them, the fact that he had called her to do the job was enough a praise to her talents. Being used to a man of so little words like Aoshi made her perfect to understand the complexity of Kenshin's adoptive father, even if Kenshin himself couldn't understand the him.

The princess's court stopped beside Misao before the stairs where one of the maidens moved from their line to drop down on one knee and make a sort of reverence with her head and right hand then stood walking closer to the man still standing under the large wooden doors of the palace until she was barely a half a meter away from him up the stairs.

"Hiko-sama, we apologize for the delay in our meeting, I'm afraid there was no way around our little detour"

"So it seemed, yet you're here already so let's go inside"

"As you wish, Hiko-sama"

Misao and the others followed the group as they moved inside the palace and she couldn't help but move as fast as the situation allowed her, to be able to catch whatever was spoken between them as well as trying to identify the girl speaking to their master. When Rue had asked to fix their attires she first thought they would indeed changed wardrobes completely but instead they had used some of the goods purchased on the market to once again have their outfits complete. Before when she had rescued them they were apparently missing a turban like hat and veil, the rest of their clothes were an easy fix and soon they all came out wearing the hat, veil and a half opened long coat that only left the view of a small piece of pink colored dress underneath. Only two of them had their coats completely open and they were the ones now walking behind Hiko while the other 3 walked a few steps back.

They still wore the same coats as the others but view was completely different by the beautiful dress of many layers and colors, very much alike the kimono styled in their country they had underneath. But, to Misao's dismay aside from that there were no major differences between them, making the guessing of the future bride almost impossible.

The women were all young and except for the extremely young Ayame they all seemed to be on their early twenties but dressed the way they were dressed they all looked the same. They were all the same high, had the same fair white skin, dark colored hair and dark colored eyes. Since neither of them spoke there was no way of comparing voices and in difference to the voice she had heard from Rue the one who spoke had a much sweeter, lighter tone.

Finally entering the palace they were taken to the open space of the throne room where Hiko took the moment to sit down comfortably on his throne.

"Shinomori" he called and the man moved closer bowing slightly in acknowledge "where is that stupid boy?" he commanded more like asked in a gruff voice.

"I'm here… father" another voice answered from the side behind Misao and Aoshi making every head turn. Kenshin entered calmly unmoved by the man's open insult to his persona. "I was merely taking care of urgent matters"

"There's nothing more urgent than the arrival of your fiancé, do something right for a change and greet her properly"

Opening his eyes this time in surprise and apparent embarrassment he moved to the group of girls standing in the middle of the hall. Again the first one dropped down on one knee greeting him like she did with Hiko before only that after doing so she moved back to signal to the young woman behind her she moved forward and instantly bowed low in front of Kenshin.

"It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Himura-sama"

"Kenshin is fine, Sayo-dono, it is also my pleasure to finally meet you" Kenshin bowed formally low in greeting and smiled warmly, his eyes never leaving the woman even as he lowered his head.

Misao couldn't help but observe critically the encounter of the two. She had opposed to this political marriage from the beginning, she knew that after the past Kenshin had had to endure the least he deserved was to be married against his will… or against other people's better judgment, to a woman he didn't even know and she had been secretly hoping for love at first sight or something along those lines… and now looking at them she couldn't help but wonder about what she was able to find.

Kenshin was carefully studying the woman behind his calm and sweet smile and the woman seemed to be studying him as well but after a second Kenshin seemed unfazed and she dropped her head in what appeared to be embarrassment. Misao was about to give up when she was suddenly thrown back by the look of disappointment in the face of the princess. What had she been expecting to find? Love at first sight as well? If so, they were doomed unless she could do something about it...

"We will be able to talk further during our meal…" Kenshin spoke as he excused himself to attend other urgent matters, yet the princess lowered her head and said in a voice barely above a whisper Misao had to strain to catch.

"If it's at all possible… could I be excused from any other formality for the rest of the day my lord… I'm exhausted and I would very much like to rest"

"Ah" Kenshin turned around to see Hiko with the same question to found him uninterested and blatantly ignoring them "by all means… please rest as much as you need, ah… Tsubame will take you to your rooms" he smiled politely and pointed his left hand towards the young maid at the end of the line of servants.

"First… I must require an audience with only Hiko-sama and yourself… Kenshin-sama" Kenshin's smiled cracked for a second at the way she said his name but recovered too quickly for the princess to notice the occurrence at all.

"Uhmm… alright" this time when Kenshin turned around to look at his adoptive father he was looking straight at them and after a couple seconds he waved a hand dismissing the rest of the party then moved up from his seat and after motioning the couple to follow him he entered a passage into another room where they would have the privacy the princess seemed to demand.

Misao left the hall walking behind Aoshi and Megumi while feeling uneasy about the whole thing and couldn't stop the frown that kept creasing her forehead.

"Misao" hearing the voice she loved full of a concern she alone could only detect the petite turned to the tall man now walking beside her and tried smiled but failed.

"I'm just worried Aoshi-sama… is not right for Kenshin to marry that woman… they don't even know each other"

"It is his decision"

"I know… but… it's not fair, how can we be able to marry out of love but he can't?" stopping a few paces in front of her he looked at her face like searching for something and then smiled, closing the space between them he placed a gentle kiss on the crown of her head and continued walking ahead of her while he talked.

"Do not fret Misao, and let the course of things flow on its own"

Again her fiancé was not only right but had read her like an open book. She felt compelled to at least try something to help them… even if she knew it was not to "smart thing to do"... even if love wasn't always on time.


	5. Blue

YELLOW! How's everyone? I apologize for the lateness of the update yet I started a new gig teaching english to small kids and as teaching and kids go... well... I was stolen of any energy I could muster for the entirety of last week and most of this week, fortunately I was able to work on this on a break and publish it today so I hope you enjoy it as much as I... suffered to write it? I also wish to apologize for any grammar mistake I may have left unedited since this piece has been only proofreaden once... anyway...

Disclaimer: I OWN RUROUNI KENSHIN... as well Himura Kenshin, Seshomaru, Abarai Renji, Tsuruga Ren, Kuchiki Byakuya, Shinomori Aoshi, Kurosaki Ichigo, Sagara Sanosuke... so SUFFER YOU FEMALE MORTALS! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! ... I think I lost it... O_o

**CHAPTER 5**

**Blue**

The air at night was becoming warmer and warmer each day; a sign that spring was nearly upon them. People in general were very pleased with the end of the autumn since in that particular part of the country the mountains were always colder than the rest of the country. He wondered how he had survived traveling through them for so long although the moment the question presented itself he felt the itching of his nose increase as a message indicating he wasn't so healthy either with the extreme cold they had been forced to endure.

Looking up at the quickly darkening sky he jumped down from his horse onto the ground and a shiver ran up his spine like a bad omen, as dark as the winter sky. A gentle smile appeared suddenly in his mind and he couldn't stop the air escaping his lungs accompanied by the slumping of his thin shoulders.

"You know… every time you sight a piece of your soul escapes from inside you" Surprised by the comment from behind him he turned around to find his long time friend looking at him with concern in his eyes yet a teasing smile on his lips. Sagara Sanosuke was a peculiar creature of bad habits with an amicable nature that made everyone around him instantly like him, he was sure even the cold Shinomori Aoshi was at least partial about the young fighter, after all, they had already fought together so many times the trust they shared was as particular as their personal stories and even thou no one knew much about Shinomori's or his own he knew Sanosuke's as if it was his very own; the man was an open book, not to mention a breath of fresh air he had accepted happily… Sano; was by all means his best and most cherished friend.

"Stop making that face or I promise I'll tie you up on a post in some lost part of the palace until the wedding is called off and maybe until the princess gets knocked up by someone else".

"Sano!" Again the sudden comment and change of topic threw the samurai off causing him to act naturally which was exactly what the fighter was looking for, so Sano smiled mischievously as he moved closer to him leaving his horse already tied to the corresponding post.

"Just kidding, you know we have to go back tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah…" he knew his responsibility very well yet he was feeling depressed just by the mere mention of his pending return and marriage.

They had left the protection of the palace and their lands about a month ago, little after the marriage preparations had been set into motion. He would be marrying the princess soon so he had only a month to finish his search or renounce the search forever. Now the sinking feeling in his gut was making him regret the whole affair against his sense of responsibility, not to mention said princess would be arriving at the palace grounds around midmorning the next day yet her affianced would not be present… unless he abandoned his task immediately so they could reach the border of Kyoto before noon… but the search…

Moving inside the inn they would be resting in, they quickly sat around a table while Aoshi made sure to give a young girl with a notepad his indications for a meal and a couple rooms. Because of the length of their travel they had had to reduce travel expenses and had been sleeping outdoors or Aoshi and Sano would bunk together in a room, of course, after living for so long together in the barracks sleeping on the same room was a simple thing neither minded. He had offered to share a room with either of them once or twice yet Aoshi would frown at the idea and not even bother to answer him; his concept of status was too engraved in his mind and even when they had been rivals for so long the okashira of the Oniwabanshu seemed to be especially stiff when it came to formalities. So he got his own bed and room, which was a really nice prospect tonight considering the long day they had experienced.

They had reached the village just in time to catch a couple rooms and lucky enough to find the kitchen still open so they could satiate their hunger and thirst before going to rest for the night but it had all been a matter of luck… their lead had taken them on a wild chase for a shrine hidden in the middle of a dense forest nobody no longer visited and in the end, the moment the sky had turned deep orange they had been forced to give up the chase and instead focus on looking for a place to stay.

"You seem tired Kenshin, have you been sleeping well?" His voice gave nothing away, it was a casual tone, the one the tall fighter used when perceiving something wrong with him and trying to get a honest answer by playing it casually yet Kenshin knew the real reason behind it.

"Nothing to be worried about Sano, I'll sleep better today since we got such a nice place to stay, that I'll do" with a smile he mentally thanked their luck and the inn keeper who had been quickly enamored with the travelers offering them her hospitality without looking at the heavy weaponry they carried.

"Have you been having weird dreams again?" The casual tone made his worry even more obvious.

"Aa… it's nothing, just old memories"

"Yet you seem to always wake up with huge bags under your eyes… and you look as if you hadn't slept at all… I just worry you know, that chick is a princess and might not like to marry some horrible looking dude"

"Sano…" His teasing worked again to produce a natural response from the smaller man who frowned and pursed his lips in slight annoyance.

"Just saying" Sano pulled his hands up in mock defense then let the topic drop.

The meal continued calmly for a while, the food was simple and cheap yet extremely delicious for all, one could tell by the pleased noise Sano was making, the warm contentment in Kenshin's eyes and the relaxed silence of Aoshi. Yet, soon enough the quite was broken by the okashira who while still eating commented lightly.

"There was another part for the lead we received, Himura"

Kenshin looked quickly at him and just as quickly looked away, he wasn't comfortable going with plan B but it seemed it was the only way they would get the information they required; the shrine was supposed to be in the middle of the forest, small, old and no longer visited by the people of the nearby villages… so, it was extremely hard to find, there were even no monks lingering around to guide visitors, they were really out of options.

"I am not too keen on speaking with that kid again; you will have the last word on this considering the tight schedule we're on"

Having said this, the tall man placed his empty bowl over the table, said his thanks for the meal and stood up from his sitting position to go up to his shared bedroom. Kenshin remained looking down at his plate and bowl feeling wary.

"We'll get up early then… the road up the mountain is as difficult as the forest itself so we must make good time if we want to be back by the time the princess visits." Kenshin remained silent, it had been Sano who had answered for him and it was not so surprising that the ex gangster of a man would understand his feelings better than anyone. The redhead turned around to face his friend and finding his wide confident smile he smiled as well and turned on his chair looking directly at Shinomori now.

"Very well" the tall man answered and rotating over his feet he moved up stairs to his room.

Kenshin and Sanosuke remained together for a while finishing their food and Sano was even able to pry some dessert from a young waitress who blushing furiously went to the kitchen and back rather quickly to offer them some sweet cream they both ate happily. When Kenshin finally got up it was late and he was heavily tired.

"I'll see you in the morning, Sano, rest well" Kenshin smiled again at his friend and walked towards the stairs.

"You too, sleep well." There was something in his words that made Kenshin feel uneasy, he was beginning to regret telling the man so much about his past. There were things they knew because news traveled fast and the stories from the times of war used to be more than just stories, people like Sanosuke understood those times better than most youngsters. What Kenshin had had to fight to get was something Sano and others were fighting to keep, to protect. So his dreams and the young girl in them were something he treasured, because of the blood on his hands, the lives he had taken and the guilt he felt there was something in the peace he know enjoyed that should belong to that one little kid… even if she didn't remember him anymore, even if she wasn't the young girl he used to know, she deserved more than the last memory he gave her.

Sighing again he opened the door to his room where he threw his pack on the floor, discarded his sword and hair band while loosening up his attire to finally plop himself over the thick futon bed. The futon was soft and incredibly comfortable after a whole day walking or riding a horse, he would have to thanks Sanosuke for his insistence earlier that night to go into town, he hadn't realize how tired he really was until he was forced to stop and sit down for a while. Still, he knew dreams would be bothering him tonight.

Lying on his back he realized it never ceased to amaze him how easily it had been for him to get used to sleeping on a bed, lying comfortably, relaxed and fall completely asleep instead of the sleepless nights, resting against a wall with his sword still held between his arms. It had all started with those beautiful blue eyes and the security they brought him, as if he had found a real haven where no pain or suffering ever got to, a place to be safe and happy… a place he desired to go back to even if just for a few hours.

_Kaoru…_

Spring was almost upon them and as the last of the brownish leaves flew away, the winds turned warmer and the sun came out again, an enchanting view for many yet for him it meant his dreams would becoming more insistent. It was as if his subconscious were pushing him to continue, to carry on, to move onwards… to finish what he had started all those years ago… to fulfill his promise and finally find her.

Yet there had been no signs of her for so long. In the beginning he had thought it would be easy, a girl with her abilities would not be passed up or ignored, there were always rumors, especially after the civil war begun, many more like her appeared… but, despite what he thought in the beginning there was actually no sign, no lead, no proof she even ever existed. No one knew her and those he knew had known her lied, ran away or were killed before he could get them to talk. Why was it so hard to find her?

The man who took her had said she would live, he believed him yet he couldn't shake the fear he had always felt. She was alive, but how? In what conditions? Beaten? Tortured? Abused? Just the thought of it burned his soul. He couldn't say he had looked for her incessantly during the past 10 years, no…

He rolled in his bed to rest on his side, closing his eyes as he mulled over the long years since they parted ways on the forest that day.

No, he had being called to help during the war before he had even started his search for her and after everything that happened… Tomoe's death, Kaoru's disappearance and his vow to never kill again he had been unable to refuse the call to help those who couldn't defend themselves, so when Hiko Seijuro appeared after so many years in reclusion with the perfect solution for his repentance within the civil war; the protection of the city and soon the country fell on his shoulders and of his now long time friends. He had met them along the way and even thought he had tried to always be on the lookout for a girl with dark blue eyes all he had found were browns and ice blue, and black, or grey… he realized now that in his way to help and search he had helped and found more friends than he had ever expected to make, a twist to his bad karma thanks to Kaoru again. It wasn't long before he realized that he had a large group of friends he loved and who loved him in return.

The marriage had been something else in the way of his search. Seijuro had been insisting on said arrangement for a few months now and forced him on all sorts of meetings and planning in order to get him to prepare for his future ruling and had finally get him to agree to the proposal made by the western lord, according to Seijuro it was a perfect match.

Without noticing he was sighing again.

After Tomoe's death he had forsaken all kinds of romantic thoughts or relationships, not that he thought himself incapable of loving another, more than was the fact that he considered himself unable to let go of the responsibilities he now held as the future lord and master of the south not to mention the search for Kaoru had always been on the back of his mind whenever he couldn't go looking for her. His time for wandering around and traveling without care or worries for those he left behind was about to finish, this marriage would mean the beginning of a new era, they would unite the lands and make their rule stronger finally bringing peace to everyone in the country. This trip could well be his last chance to find Kaoru before his responsibilities swallowed up his time until he was left with none to indulge in this "hobby" of his.

_Kaoru-chan…_

As thoughts of the present left his mind other thoughts regarding pleasant memories of the past came to his mind pulling him into a light sleep.

"_Kenshin don't tell me you got tired again!" Kaoru was not pleased at all "you're too weak" she moaned and went to sit down on the grass covered ground a bamboo sword on her hands. _

"_It's the sun Kaoru-chan, I _'_m_ _afraid I am still a little under the weather to stand under it for so long" He tried to sound apologetic but he wasn't really sorry, he wasn't feeling as tired as he said he was and instead he could very well tell the child was a lot more tired than she let on, yet unwilling to back down because of the anger she had appeared with earlier that day. _

"_Uhmm…" placing her shinai* beside her she seemed to be in deep thought with her eyes cast down and her lips pursed together. "Alright then… I'll let you go, we'll continue tomorrow"_

_She pulled her knees up and looked to the other side, perhaps she had caught on to him and his fake exhaustion. _

"_Kaoru-chan, there's no need to be upset, I will practice with you some more…"_

"_It's not that Kenshin… you don't have to humor me… I'm just angry over something silly, it doesn't matter"_

_Kaoru had said before that she wanted to become like Tomoe and like her she wanted to be calm, elegant, delicate and collected yet the fire in her kept playing her easily, getting her into trouble with the elders in the city. _

"_What happened, Kaoru-chan?" Kenshin sat down beside her, supporting his back on the tree behind them, pulling his legs towards him he folded one over the other and brought his arms together inside the sleeve of his pinkish gi. _

"_There's a celebration tonight, it'sTanabata and there will be food, games and even fireworks… but I cannot go" she didn't look away this time, instead she looked at Kenshin directly so he was able to see the annoyance in her eyes. "I went to see the fireworks early because they were checking them… practicing or something but some kids saw me and said some nasty things… they even said I couldn't come to the celebration, that I would ruin it… I told them I would go anyway and left but when I asked Nanao she said it was better if I didn't… she said it would not be good" _

_Now the kid was looking dejected and sad. _

"_But it's okey…. It's not like I wanted to go that badly…" she moved up from her sitting position and down to rest on her hands and knees and crawled over to her bag from which she pulled their meal "I'll bring you some stuff from the celebration… I can ask Nanao to save me some sweets and rice balls… would you like some? _

"_Sure, I love sweets" Kenshin smiled back at the smiling girl yet he could tell she was not happy, not really. He knew it was hard for her to live surrounded by people who didn't understand her or like her just because of the gift she possessed, not even his father was aware of the difficulties she faced and seemed to be unaware of how she felt, he thought someone should do something nice to her… to show her there were others in this world who would befriend her, like her and love her no matter her differences with them, especially with her strong willed personality and out spoken nature, she was someone he trusted deeply._

"_Kaoru-chan… would you like us to have a Tanabata celebration?" _

_The girl looked back at him puzzled, a couple sweet potato buns on her hands, and as she sat down next to him she asked him curious. _

"_What do you mean?"_

"_Well… you can't go to the celebration in town but that doesn't mean we cannot have our own celebration, right?"_

_Instantly she opened her eyes big and they lit up with excitement. _

"_Really?! Can we have our own celebration Kenshin?" _

"_Sure, why not?" she tossed him his bun and as they ate they talked about the preparation they would need to do for their celebration. Soon her previous anger was completely forgotten as well as the reason why she had been angry in the first place, Kenshin was surprised at how easy it was to please the girl and how easily she forgot or forgave those who wronged her. She was much too sweet he realized and she was so adorable she would probably grow up to be beautiful and strong, yet her lack of social upbringing gave her a margin for naivety and misunderstandings to root and cause her pain, he could only hope no one ever broke her heart… she was too sweet and trusting. _

_Now that his wounds were closed and the internal damage was almost cured he was taking his alone time to practice his stance, swings and a little bit of other light exercises to repair the wariness of his body, he would leave eventually and he needed to be in shape if he wanted to travel as far away as his wondering took him, yet he the sensation of haven their hideout had, made it difficult to remain worried about the future for long, instead he would only train for a small while before he dedicated himself to other more calm activities, like meditating, reading, writing or sleeping… _

"_Kenshin, why do you sleep sitting down?" _

_Opening his eyes he realized the sky was turning a pretty orange-pink a sign of the approaching evening, even some light music could be heard in the air… a sign of the upcoming events in the city and a young girl was looking at him somewhat puzzled. She was beside his makeshift bed so he was reminded of her question. _

_Kaoru had arrived packed with stuff and was looking at him with her blue eyes, big and clear full with curiosity. She was so easy to read if one saw those eyes directly, not to mention the kid didn't know how to deceive, a pure girl at heart. _

"_It's a bad habit Kaoru-chan" stretching his body he worked the kinks on his back and legs by curving his body and rotating his knees and shoulders. _

"_It doesn't look comfy, how can you sleep like that?" _

"_One doesn't sleep much when one is fighting in a war, one must remain alert… it's a good thing Kaoru-chan won't have to fight a war, it's a lot better to sleep comfy in a bed, ne?"_

_Kaoru seemed to be pondering his words in her mind for a little before she turned around and walked to leave her bags to rest beside his bed. _

"_I guess so, but you're no longer fighting in a war so you should sleep in your bed… you'll feel better and we'll be able to practice more"_

_Kenshin laughed softly as he knelt down beside her and when he looked inside the bags he noticed the colorful materials inside them and smiled. Kaoru smiled back and begun pulling them out one by one. It took them a while to hang everything and arrange everything but in the end it was worth it. Their little piece of land was looking magical to say the least; they had a couple lanterns hanging from the tree and a pole, colorful shapes hanging from strings from the pole to the tree, a decorated blanket with many different sweets and delicious looking food as well as beverages, it was a feast and so she had also brought something to dress themselves accordingly. _

_For such a celebration she had brought a kimono she said her father had given her as a present not so long ago and she had also taken a cobalt black haori for Kenshin to wear over his gi and hakama with beautiful embroideries worthy of any palace. This made Kenshin wonder for a moment if her father was indeed a simple soldier or kendo master being able to afford such clothes of high quality; the haori itself was a master piece and Kaoru's kimono was of a very pretty colored silk, nothing too fancy, it was rather simple until one examined the quality of the fabric. _

"_My dad said this was something my mother bought me before she died… she wanted me to be a lady or something…"_

"_Aah… Kaoru-chan, you will one day become a lady for sure" he said teasingly and the little girl blushed and pouted in annoyance. _

"_See if I ever dress like this for you again!" she stuck her tongue out and fought to place each part of the kimono over a blanket to fix their order. _

"_Maa maa, there's no need to get angry at me Kaoru-chan I was merely joking" looking at her now seriously serious expression he looked more closely to her supposed kimono and had to fight his laughter in. _

"_You seem confused Kaoru-chan, do you need help?" _

_After denying him a couple times she desisted and let the ex samurai help her fix the order of the clothes and later to tie the obi behind her back. He was surprisingly good at it and it left her looking expertly dressed. For a girl so young it was a major task, especially one so hyperactive like her. _

_Finally dressed and ready they spent the next couple hours making origami figures, playing with a paper ball, watching the stars and eating until they were completely satiated. _

"_The fireworks will start soon, it's a good thing we're in a good place to watch them" _

"_I heard music was playing a while ago… why did it stop?"_

"_Oh… it's a band, they are supposed to play again but it's for a… tradition of the city, my father told me is to find your destined love"_

"_Destined love?"_

"_Yeah, they all wear masks and dance together and when the music stops the one you're dancing with must give you a kiss and so they are meant for each other"_

"_Aa… I see" _

"_I made my mask really pretty and big so no one would know it was me… and I had one for my dad too"_

_They remained in silence for a moment before she turned around to look at him seriously. _

"_Kenshin, would you come with me to dance…? If you come with me they won't suspect it is me… no one will know…. I would really like to dance… yes?"_

_It only took him a few seconds to consider her proposal and moving up from his place over the blanket he presented her his hand to pull her up. _

"_Let's go then my lady, we've got some dancing to do"_

_The walk towards the city was joyful as well; they talked again about many things and laughed between clenched teeth when they moved from shadow to shadow until they reached the Kamiya dojo. There Kenshin waited outside until she came back out caring a couple masks with her; the first one had a butterfly shape and was as colorful as the most impressive one, the second was a dragon mask and Kenshin was surprised it was supposed to be the one used by Kaoru's father. It was red with golden and white details, a colorful mask as well, beautiful as well but in a different sense. _

_Both placed their masks in unison and moved deeper into the city to find the decorated streets and mingle with the others. For a moment Kenshin could only look to one side of the street to the other; this was the first time in his life he had been able to participate or enjoy a festivity like this one, it was his first time surrounded by this many people without trying to find one and kill him/her, so it was new and somewhat exciting, the smiling and laughing sight of Kaoru in front of him, pulling his hand was also part of his excitement, Kaoru's feelings were contagious and so they moved through the streets between a sea of people who not even once asked who they were or what they were doing there. Unnoticed by everyone they went from one store to another, from one booth to another until they reached the small shrine plaza were the dance was going to be held. Already the musicians were placed in their designated positions and smiling like crazy Kaoru was waiting for them to start. _

_Kenshin leaned towards her and whispered in her ear "For you, Kaoru-chan" she looked up at him quickly going from surprised to overjoyed; she smiled from ear to ear blushing furiously as she pulled his hand to walk them both on to the quickly filling dance floor. _

_Soon they were moving to the rhythm of several instruments playing in unison. It took a little for Kenshin to catch the steps and follow the crowd as they exchanged partners over and over again, it didn't take long before he himself was laughing, watching Kaoru twirling around, giggling like mad as she moved along youngsters, adults, kids, girls and boys. He saw a pattern begin to form after a couple minutes that showed the way the dance would end and he realized as well there were many dancing together that had already made up their minds about who they chose to be with regardless of the so called destiny the dance would determine. _

_Aah… to be young and to feel love. _

_He had come to realize the extent of Tomoe's affections for him a little too late to understand her actions before and after marrying him and so it had taken him even longer to come to terms with his own feelings for her. He loved her, he had done so whole heartedly and now while he was able to live in peace even if just for a while he was able to see how her love for him and his love for her would not stand in his way to fall in love with another, if life ever granted him the moment to settle down and find the right one he would devote himself to her like he should have done with Tomoe. _

_Caught in his thoughts he didn't realize the moment the music had changed into a quick step that threw him from one couple arms to another, from many different women who upon seeing studying him, his figure and his face behind the mask they would part ways with him with a little bit of disappointment in their expressions. Before he could even realize the song had played the last few notes he had seen Kaoru reach him from one end of the dance floor to his arms, finally back with the partner she had started with. _

_Then the music came to an abrupt stop. _

_Her face was flushed, he could tell because of the rose colored skin of her neck and she was beyond happy, this he could tell by the bright shine of her eyes and the ample smile on her face. He saw how some couples separated immediately while others remained on the dance floor for the next dance and a few ones moved from the center stage to search for a little more privacy. _

_Kaoru didn't waste time in pulling him by the hand to walk behind her until they left the city, then she let go of him and laughing broke into a dead run through the fields, he followed her of course and found himself laughing with her as they made their way to their secret haven. Finally there Kaoru threw herself over the blanket they had left there and Kenshin, still breathing hard he plopped down over the fabric, a small energetic smile on his face. _

"_You're now my destined love Kenshin" Kaoru said after a moment with a mockingly serious expression. _

"_Oro?"_

"_Yes, now we must promise to be with me forever" still smiling she tried to contain her laughter as she said this. "And promise to love me and only me"_

"_Uhmmm… I should think about it for a moment, you are a little too much for me, I would probably die trying to keep up with you"_

"_Kenshin!" she laughed out right now and had to fight it down to continue. _

"_You have no choice Kenshin, its destiny!"_

"_Oh well… if its destiny I cannot do a thing to stop it" he placed his index finger on his chin in a pensive expression for a couple seconds before he pulled his legs in a kneeling position in front of Kaoru, then took her hand in his and looking gravely serious he said in a low voice. _

"_I promise I will be with you until the end of time and even after your gone I will love you and only you" _

_It took only a second for Kaoru to blush deep and dark from seemingly the tip of her toes to the hairs of her head, Kenshin was sure he had actually seen the steam come out and up of her head in a puff. The young girl pulled her hand away so quickly she nearly fell to the side and taking it with her other hand she stammered her protest. _

"_K-Ken-shin… don't …. b-be silly!" he realized she would have wacked him over the head with her bokuto or shinai if she had either of them within her reach at the time, fortunately for him she had left those back home when she went to pick their items for the festivities, not to mention she didn't need them or want to have them during the dance. _

_Kenshin could only smile happily at her reaction; she was young and sweet. _

_Looking away she was still cradling her left hand on her right when she spoke sounding unsure. _

"_Now I will make my promise"_

_Kenshin was surprised she would try to play along and quickly moved to sit down cross legged comfortably waiting for what he supposed were going to be her own childish idea of a love confession. _

"_But you have to close your eyes and not move"_

_He considered her conditions for only a couple seconds before he straightened his back and closed his eyes shut. He heard her move to face him and get closer to him a few centimeters. _

"_Promise you'll keep them closed and not move"_

"_Another promise, Kaoru-chan that is most unfair…"_

"_Kenshin!"_

"_Hai, hai, I promise"_

_A noise like a hum was made like an acceptance of his promise and he heard her come closer to him again, even thou this time she moved until she was just a few inches from him. Knowing the kid was unpredictable made him feel edgy yet he trusted her anyway, not to mention he was sure there was nothing she could do, especially at the moment that he should be wary about._

_So he remained calm, his eyes shut and his body relaxed and unmoving. Then he felt the soft touch of flower petals on his lips, cool and soft like silk. It was a tentative touch he recognized as a kiss the second before they pulled away from him, making it for a moment as if nothing had happened, as if it had been just his imagination but when he opened his eyes he saw the clear effect of her bold action on her face, since she had pulled her mask up and out of her face to kiss him so he could see the butterfly kiss written all over her face, even her eyes had changed and had a slight touch of fear on them. Fear of what he wondered when a thought occurred and he moved take her hand again, pulling her to him in a tight embrace. _

"_Remember your promise then, Kaoru-chan, you must remain with me and love me and only me forever" _

_The warmth in the air made the situation all the more calm, sweet and tender, even Kenshin find it difficult to disagree with his and her actions since it all felt safe and perfect… he would never do such a thing or say such a thing to her again, yet for the night destiny had brought them together to vow their eternal devotion to each other, even if just for the night he considered a life inside his haven, a life of peace and happiness. _

_A life with Kaoru._

A/N: Please forgive my hints at pedophilia... lolita or shota... something... uhmmm, my intentions are only to ilustrate a growing fondness for the feelings of kindness she gave him and what the future could give him if he remained beside her, after all in only 5 or 6 years she would have been of age to marry... anyway... thank you for reading!


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